Summer Music Series
by Wickedfetch
Summary: AU, what if Hyde and Jackie didn't meet until 1985? Rated T for swearing and suggestive scenes.
1. Summer

Author's Note:

I think a lot of Hyde and Jackie's problems stem from the fact that they only met because of Michael – he looms over their relationship and makes Steven all kinds of insecure which inevitably leads to stupid decisions on both he and Jackie's parts. So I wondered, what would have happened if Jackie hadn't dated Michael? This story is just one of many that could have developed.

Set in 1985 when Jackie is 23 and Hyde is 24 in Chicago.

I do not own, just attacked by a plot bunny that would not leave me alone. This is shorter than my usual stuff; a two, maybe three shot. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

Having live performances was his idea, and while he was happy to set up all the logistics and even a bit of the promotion being saddled with this cross of a junior producer/reporter was getting to be a bit too much of a pain in the ass.

She was tiny, he wasn't a big guy and he felt overly large next to her, as if with one wrong move he'd send her spiraling to the ground, and perky. Way too perky. Angie's perky was annoying, but Miss Burkhart's was like a whole new circle of hell.

She kept asking questions, stupid questions, then scribbling notes and asking for quotes. She didn't have the first idea of what she was covering, half his answers prodded more queries. They'd been at it for, had it really only been half an hour? Felt like four. He needed a drink.

But no, she stuck to him like glue, no worse than glue, a tick. And now she was asking him for a live interview. Not what he'd had in mind at all.

He'd anticipated a bit of press, easily handled, then an enjoyable evening of tunes, a strong hit once he got home, and a girl to share his bed for a couple of hours. Burkhart was getting in the way of all of that.

He was keyed up, filling with excess energy with nowhere for it to go. There were two ways to handle this, intimidation or Zen. She had a camera with her, so Zen it was.

After a few answers of 'whatever' she glared at him, but retreated to consult with her assistant or cameraman or whatever.

"We're an hour out bro."

"Whatever."

"Oooh, she was that annoying huh? Had to retreat all the way back to being seventeen again?" Angie teased him. Hyde glared at her. Having a sister was two parts torture and one part annoyance.

"You knew they were sending someone over didn't you?"

Angie grinned at him, "And that's why I offered to take care of the after party in exchange for publicity."

"Ugh."

Angie grin stretched so wide she was practically baring her teeth at him.

"At least the set will be good." He grumbled, and turning to stalk away from Angie he nearly ran over Jackie.

"Can I quote you on that?"

"Whatever."

He'd anticipated more glaring, or maybe a seductive eyelash batting, but instead he was met with a shoulder shrug.

"Whatever it is then."

Damn. If she printed that it would get back to WB and this whole initiative of his would get scrapped before it even got out of the parking lot.

"Or perhaps you prefer I print that you rolled your eyes, or shrugged your shoulders?"

"Fine. The set will be good. Happy now?"

"Ecstatic." She looked up at him all steely determination, and then launched in to another thirty minutes of questions. He only managed to extricate himself when he said he needed to check on the band, and that was only because she was shuffling through her notebook trying to find the questions she wanted to ask them.

He was finally free. Angie was manning the store like a pro, yet another reason she had pushed him into the front end of this gig – to show she knew more than him about managing. He ground his teeth, but forced himself into his responsible persona. He'd be damned if she scuttled him that easily.

He managed to enjoy the set, but his game was off and he ended up helping Angie lock up.

* * *

Three more gigs, and he was more annoyed with Burkhart. She brought up musical influences that had no bearing on the bands playing at Grooves, asked pointless questions about the history of the band like their favourite hair care products and names of their girlfriends, and did it all with either overflowing perkiness or a steely determination.

He was sick of it, she was seriously ruining his buzz, and cutting into his extracurricular activities; enough that he had even contemplated scrapping the whole idea to avoid her. To top it all off Angie was enjoying herself and dropped him in the deep end whenever she could, further complicating things.

Tomorrow he was going down to the Chicago Mirror and getting her fired. He could do it, a few accusations there, a bit of throwing the Barnett name around… Or at least get her reassigned the hell away from him, but tonight was different, usually she mingled throughout the set annoying people to get their quotes. Instead she was standing off to the side, alone, looking – was that wistfully? - at the mass of bodies dancing (or as Red put it, wiggling).

He found his feet moving toward her of their own accord before he managed to stop, turn around, and focus on sorting records.

* * *

Three gigs later he was shoving down an odd flare of jealousy when she grinned at something her cameraman/assistant had said, and striding across the floor before he could think of an excuse. She didn't see him coming, so he quickly redirected himself to Angie who happened to be nearby. But he'd forgotten the relish she got out of the whole thing. He fled outside.

His own store, his own gig. He was trying to reign in his growing rage, and failing. Not only had she annoyed him for over an hour this evening, but now she was interfering with his ability to enjoy the music he had arranged for himself to enjoy (with the added benefit of coming up with a better idea to drive sales than Angie – one that was paying off handsomely).

He was still outside, smoking, when Jackie and her assistant finally left the gig. They didn't notice him, and he watched as Jackie fiddled with her piece of shit car until it finally started with a spluttering cough, an acrid smoke mingling with his cigarette's.

* * *

"I wish someone would dance like that with me" Jackie whined to Angie. Three months of gigs and they had struck up a friendship. Angie had approached her sometime in July during one of the sets, and they'd been giggling and gossiping ever since. Steven had at first chalked it up to another sisterly bout of annoying him, but they seemed to have genuinely bonded.

Which was great. Super. Now she dropped by the store at odd hours to hang out with Angie, and annoy the hell out of him. He'd yelled at her a few times and she'd visibly shrunk for a moment before shrugging her shoulders and ignoring him. Wouldn't even fight back. Made it difficult to win, but he'd burned her a couple of times, so at least if they weren't even he wasn't yet defeated.

He looked where her eyes were focused, and walked away.

* * *

The next time he wasn't quite as successful. "You wanna dance?" The words left his mouth before he had time to think. She looked back at him, speechless for a moment before she nodded and he threaded them through the crowd leaving Angie behind. He tried not to think about the feel of her in his arms, so different to the one or two times he'd danced before, and he found he didn't mind this wiggling in public thing quite as much as he should.

They didn't talk at first, but then she burned a girl who had copped a feel on his ass and joined him in a laugh. He was entranced by her throat and gripped with a sudden urge to kiss her. "Jackie, I kinda wanna kiss you."

"Okay." She said, but they were knocked sideways by another couple, and the moment broke. "If she can't hold her booze you shouldn't be walking her out in public." Jackie shot at them, and even though the girl's boyfriend was a hulking giant Hyde couldn't help but laugh with her as they retreated back to Angie.

"I didn't know you could dance little brother." Angie teased.

"Yet another mystery Angie, what can I say, gotta cultivate my mystique." He said as he left them, still hungry for a kiss.

* * *

By the end of the summer he was going crazy. Each week they had a gig, and each week Jackie would show up and annoy the hell out of him. Only it wasn't exactly annoying. She had a bitchy side, and the more they got to know each other the fierier she became when he wouldn't cooperate with her. She'd pout, she'd whine, she'd practically beg, she'd try tricking him, and occasionally kicking him in the shins.

Sometimes the entire four hour set up for the gig passed in what felt like half an hour. Then they'd mingle with the crowd, and late in August he'd drive her home and make out on her couch until her roommate kicked him out.

Angie didn'tlet up on the teasing, which he solved by showing her up at their meetings with WB. The more she teased, the more competitive he got until she started to back off.

He was going crazy. Jackie wasn't his kind of chick. She didn't care about music, or least her tastes were terrible. She had manicures and talked about her hair. She collected glass unicorns.

But she could fling burn for burn too – so it didn't matter that she wasn't busty and wearing punk leather and black week old nail polish. Or that her make-up was a little too overdone for him, or that she and Angie were best friends, or that her expectations were sky high (course she also had mini-skirts he loved to slide his hand under too).

He was going crazy because he was losing his excuse to spend time with her. Tonight was the last in the summer series, and though their numbers were way up he and WB agreed it was best to keep the novelty intact and end the limited run until next summer. Which meant he was going to actually have to talk to Jackie.

He didn't talk to girls. Especially not a talk about defining their relationship. Shit. She'd hooked him into a relationship, without once getting to see her naked. Though the idea of seeing her naked made him want to talk about it. Crazy. He was going crazy.

"You wanna come back to my place tonight?" He husked into her ear after climbing into the El Camino and necking. She looked nervous, but said yes. They were quiet on the drive over, usually Jackie had plenty to talk about – he knew a million particulars about both her roommate and all of her co-workers, as well as Pat Benatar. As they pulled up she began to wring her hands. He laid one of his over them.

"Look, I'll just take you home."

"No! Steven, I want to come up, it's just…" She trailed off as he slunk down into his seat a defeated set to his shoulders. "What are we doing?"

"We're gonna go upstairs and I'm gonna throw you on my bed and have my way with you like I've been fantasizing about for months."

"Months?" She squeaked. He'd been dreaming about it for months and not once had pressured her about it. Maybe it didn't matter that he hadn't called her his girlfriend. Or called her at all for that matter.

"Jackie." He said, his voice soft, almost pleading.

"I want to Steven. You have no idea how much I want to tear your clothes off, but I'm not going to be one of your girls."

"What girls?"

"The ones you take home and then never talk to again."

At that he leaned back into his seat and away from her, but didn't deny it.

"Angie should know better than to run her mouth." He said.

"I offer myself on a platter and that's all you have to say?" She said, lunging for the door, but his hand grabbed one of her wrists.

"Don't. Look. Jackie." He started. She turned to face him, but kept her body leaning away, ready to escape at a moment's notice.

"You're not one of those girls." He said, facing her.

"Then what am I?" She said, her voice tremulous.

"Uh. You know." He stuttered out.

"No, I don't Steven. I have no idea what's going on inside your head, or your heart for that matter. It's been fun, and you're ridiculously hot, but if this is just some summer fling for you then…" she trailed off.

"Fine. You're my chick. Happy?" He spat out, half expecting an indignant snort – but then she practically jumped into his lap and began to kiss him forcefully.

"Ecstatic."

* * *

As always reviews are much appreciated!


	2. Thanksgiving

He'd come home early and sometimes she'd already be there. She usually beat him home from work when she wasn't out covering something at night since she had the early show and went to bed long before he did. Usually she'd be lounging on the couch reading one of her magazines and listening to tapes or records (his – he took great pride in educating her musically). He'd kiss her, sometimes pulling her onto his lap to make out, and then make them dinner.

She usually did the shopping, here and there in bits – somehow both annoying and endearing – since she was a terrible cook. She'd attempted to bake him cookies once, and they'd had a fight about how he wouldn't even pretend to like them. A fight that led to his storming out, leaving her in a puddle of tears. Only to reconcile the same night rather satisfyingly.

Those months in the hotel's kitchen combined with Mrs Forman's lessons here and there made him a decent enough cook. Before Jackie he mostly ate frozen dinners and pizza, but something about having her there made him want to cook for her. The same thing that made her do his laundry and wash his floors.

Which she was currently doing. He leaned into the door for a moment appreciating her ass before he whistled. She turned to him, blushing, still in her work clothes.

"Not that I'm complaining about the view, but what are you doing?"

"I spilled my soda, and as I was wiping it up I noticed there was a dirty splotch on the floor, so I wiped that one, only to see another one, and ended up mopping your whole floor."

He laughed, and she pouted up at him. She had long complained about his apartment. It was roomy and in a nice part of town, but the walls were still eggshell white, and he'd only bought himself a couch, a mattress and lamp for his bedroom.

Only now he also had a night table to match his bed frame, which matched the blanket and comforter and mountain of pillows she had insisted he buy. He had grumbled about it the entire time, but he had to admit sleeping on soft things was nice. Not out loud of course. But still, on the nights she was out late he found himself cocooning in the bed they usually shared even though she wasn't there to invite him to.

He was equal parts turned on by the view of her mopping his floor and... was that contentment? He wasn't sure. How had Kelso put it on his last visit? Less pissed off. Good thing all the incriminating evidence stayed behind the hastily closed bedroom door, not that he couldn't handle Kelso, but Kelso couldn't handle gossip. He'd tell Eric who'd tell Mrs. Formoan who would then ask him a million questions.

Although. Thanksgiving was in a week, and he planned on spending it with the Formans since WB called it a white man's holiday. He didn't get to see them much, especially over the past few months – being so busy with work (and Jackie). He toyed with the idea as he cooked, eventually broaching the subject as they shared dinner on the couch.

"You know Steven, you could at least get cardboard box to put the plates on."

"I'll look for one next time I'm in your neighborhood." He shot back at her, grinning. She scowled at him. He wasn't comfortable with her crappy neighborhood, especially when she got back late from assignments, and insisted she stay with him if she was out late, even if it meant waking him up at three in the morning.

"How about a table and chairs instead?" He offered. She immediately misunderstood (as he'd counted on) and clapped her hands for joy.

"Oh Steven, I saw the cutest-"

"Just for thanksgiving." He interjected before she went too far down her trajectory.

"Can you rent furniture?" She asked, skeptical, knowing he was up to something, but not sure what.

"How about you come home with me for Thanksgiving?" He asked, feeling more vulnerable than he liked.

"I can't." She said, matter-of-factly.

"Fine." He said, shooting to his feet and taking his plate to the kitchen.

"Steven." She said, moving to follow him.

"I said fine Jackie, if you don't want to come that's fine."

"I didn't say that, I said I can't. I have to work."

"You mostly just do gopher work for your boss, couldn't your cameraman do that? It's Thanksgiving, it's not like they can make you."

"They're not. I volunteered."

"So unvolunteer."

"I can't."

"Okay then."

"Steven."

"Don't. Just don't Jackie."

"I don't understand why you're so upset." She said dumping their plates into the sink. He wanted to explain to her, but somehow he couldn't. He couldn't explain because he hadn't even known what he wanted until she said no.

He wanted the Formans to meet her. He wanted them to know he'd found someone. He wanted them to know he was happy. He wanted Jackie to meet his parents, his brother, his friends. But he didn't want things like that. Hyde's didn't get things like that. They didn't take girls home to meet mom and dad because dad was gone and mom was passed out on the couch.

And he didn't want to get into it with her. He didn't want to explain why the Formans' were his parents because then he'd have to explain how Angie was his sister, and what his mother was, and all that shit he just really didn't want to talk about.

So he said "Whatever." And Jackie stormed out of the apartment so angry she wouldn't let him drive her home.

Fine. If she wanted to leave. Fine.

He didn't call her and she didn't call him. That wasn't new. They didn't call each other her much, verbal communication wasn't their thing.

He dropped by her work the next day to make sure she'd gotten home safe, and she dropped by the store that same afternoon, and that night she'd woken him up at 2am after finishing work and they'd made love, but they didn't talk about it.

He thought about it, what to say, but he couldn't quite put the words together. If she'd just come Mrs Forman or Forman himself would have explained it to her, and then he wouldn't have to. Now, now he'd have to explain, and he couldn't do that. Couldn't tell her the truth. Couldn't explain what he was. Just. Couldn't.

* * *

He drove up Wednesday morning, knowing the only way he'd get a chance to talk to or see Mrs Forman would be to get there the day before. Usually he looked forward to Thanksgiving, he'd especially been looking forward to it this year since he'd missed all of Red's summer barbeques, but the El Camino felt empty without Jackie in it and he found himself missing her fiercely – fiercer than he'd missed his parents when they left. And that scared him.

If he hadn't promised Mrs Forman he'd be there he would have stopped at a bar and drunk himself into a stupor. But he made it, and she flung her arms around him and welcomed him back giggling and squeezing and squealing. Red formally shook his hand, but there was that look in his eye – the proud one he always tried to put there.

They'd chatted about this, and that, and nothing, catching him up on the news of Point Place until Forman arrived that evening with Kelso and Fez in tow. They thundered down the stairs for a circle before dinner. And that's when it all went wrong.

He was relaxed, so when Kelso asked him why he wasn't so pissed off lately he said because of Jackie. And then the questions started. Forman wanted to know just how long it had been going on, with Kelso saying Angie had told him it had started in May.

"We have not been dating that long Kelso." He said.

"Then how long?" Forman asked.

"Uhhh…"

"When did you do it?" Fez asked, "What was it like? Was she good?" He followed up, Kelso drooling at his side.

Hyde reached over and frogged them both.

"Owww! Hyde!" Kelso yelled.

"You must really love her." Fez teased, only to be frogged again.

"That hurt you son of a bitch!"

"Knock it off or I'll do it again."

"Wow. Hyde. She's really done a number on you, you sure she's not the devil? I mean you can't remember when you started dating, maybe she like, bewitched you."

"We're not a TV show Forman." Hyde said, frogging Forman.

"You doing lots of push ups man? Cause by now your arms gotta be tired." Kelso said, only to have Hyde frog him again.

"Of frogging! Geez what do you think I meant?!"

"Wait, Hyde. If she's your girlfriend, then where is she?" Forman asked.

"She has to work."

"Ooooh- you didn't even deny it. You love her." Fez teased, dodging Hyde's attack.

"Gentlemen, I believe we need to have a toast, one of us has fallen nobly in battle." Forman said, hoisting an imaginary glass in the air.

"Fallen? He's doing it!" Fez cried.

"And if anyone has fallen in battle that was you like forever ago in high school." Kelso said.

"What are you talking about man?" Hyde said, confused, to Forman.

"Donna – you fell in in love with Donna like forever ago man." Kelso said to Forman.

"I'm not in love with Donna." Hyde said, even more confused.

"Cause you're in love with Jackie." Forman said, ignoring Kelso.

"Shut up Forman."

"I didn't hear a denial."

"Ow!" Forman yelped as Hyde frogged him again.

* * *

They'd been settling in to watch some show on TV with popcorn, with Red muttering and Kitty mothering, when the doorbell rang. "Now who could that be at 10 o'clock at night?" Kitty complained as she got up to answer the door. Steven had shrugged with the others, unconcerned, but his ears perked up to the sound of his name being called.

"Oh Steven, look who's here!" Mrs Forman trilled, as she opened the front door to reveal Jackie looking uncomfortable as hell.

"Jackie." He said, stunned.

"Come in, come in. You must be Steven's girlfriend." Kitty said as she welcomed Jackie into their home, grinning, looking as if she wanted to jump up and down in delight. Jackie followed her looking at Steven as she did, asking him for something with her big eyes.

He wasn't sure if she wanted him to make the awkwardness go away, or if she was sorry, or what, but he got up and introduced her, hoping against hope his dumbass friends wouldn't say something stupid. (They didn't, mostly because of Red's glare behind his back)

He wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless, so he grabbed her hand, made a lame excuse of giving her a tour and pulled her down into the basement.

"Why are we going into the basement?" She asked

"That's where my room is."

"In the basement?" She repeated.

"Did the drive make you stupid or something?" He asked her, she swatted him playfully as he pulled her down the stairs guiding her into his room.

"This is your room? But it's grey, and gross. You only have a cot!" She was starting to get worked up.

"Yeah. What? You have some policy against doing it on cots?"

"But- Steven- they're your parents!" She said. She seemed to be turning away from him, and he felt his stomach plummet to his feet. This was it. This was the moment she wised up and took off.

"That bitch!" She yelled. "How could she put her son down here! Oh I am going up there to give her a piece of my mind."

Wait. What?

"Jackie-" He said, not understanding.

"I know she's your mother Steven, but I don't care, I'm gonna kick her ass!" Jackie said.

"No you're not. " He said, grinning at her, man she was hot, all fired up, and wanting to fight – for him.

"Of course I am!"

"Jackie, calm down." He said, bringing her to him gently, and began to tell her the story of Edna leaving and how he ended up down in the dirty basement.

"And they didn't offer you a room upstairs?"

"Jackie, Red was losing his job at the plant and Eric and Laurie were upstairs."

"Oh." She said glumly, then more appreciatively "Oh." And finally, turning to him with something shining in her eyes "oh."

"You got anything else you wanna get off your chest? Like maybe your bra?" He teased.

"Steven" She squealed, blushing, but the bra did come off eventually.

* * *

They were up early the next day since Jackie still had to work, and while she took the hour she seemed to think she needed each morning in the bathroom, he made breakfast. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, and orange juice, just like Mrs Forman made him most mornings he lived there. He was lost in thought, about last night, about how understanding Jackie had been, and how hot and amazing the sex had been. It usually was, but last night had been something else, something more – even more than it had already been, and he was daydreaming – which was something he never ever did – about things he hadn't thought about in fifteen years.

He remembered when he was nine dreaming of Bud coming home. Of Edna getting off booze. Of family – only now it was he and Jackie and there was no way in hell he'd take off – and damn if that thought wasn't unsettling since he had no idea what she thought about anything. She had been even more closed off than him.

Oh she talked a lot, but even last night, not about herself, not really. And now he was dreaming a stupid daydream. Shit. Did she even?

"I love you." Came the words in his ear, and he started, half expecting to find an imaginary naked Jackie or an over-doting Kitty, but instead he felt her very real hands embrace him from behind. He leaned back into her, and slowly turning, kissed her deeply.

She looked up at him, somehow both expectant and patient – as if she knew he wasn't going to say it back, but hoped he would anyway - when Kitty interrupted.

"Good grief you kids are up early!" She chirped, overjoyed to have Steven (and his girlfriend, _girlfriend!_ ) in her kitchen.

"And they made breakfast." Red deadpanned, moving to his seat at the table.

"And coffee." Steven gestured to the pot.

He didn't even mind that they'd broken the moment with Jackie, if they hadn't he would have said some seriously stupid shit. Shit he knew they weren't ready for – or at least he wasn't – not yet, not when it had just popped into his head, look what that had gotten him with Thanksgiving.

Breakfast was over. Red had been absorbed in his paper, but Kitty and Jackie had carried on a lively conversation, not noticing him. He rose and began taking the dishes to the sink, when Kitty stopped him.

"You go ahead and say goodbye." She said, watching as the pair of them left through the sliding door, even craning her neck to watch the goodbye.

"Kitty."Red cautioned.

"Oh stop it Red. He's in love."

"Don't let him hear you say that."

"And she must love him too, driving all the way out here and waking up at 3am to drive back – all to spend a couple hours together."

"And meet the family."

"Oh Red!"

"Kitty." He warned, gesturing to the door as Steven walked back in.

"Need some help with dinner Mrs Forman?" He asked. (He'd always been such a sweet boy)

"Oh, thank you Steven." She beamed up at him.

"Now Kitty, leave the boy alone, let him work in peace." Red said as he left the kitchen.

"Go on, I know you have a million questions." Steven said, wincing at the tightness of her hug.

"How did you meet?" She started.

* * *

"You really do love her."

"Shut your pie-hole Forman."

"I saw you yesterday, you were miserable, but today, it's like nothing can get you down. Not even Laurie showing up randomly. Or Kelso denting the El Camino." Forman said, grinning, enjoying the ongoing burn of his brother/friend, "does she know?"

"I don't want to talk about."

"Fine, but when you screw up and need some advice, don't come to me."

"I won't."

"Good."

"I'll ask Donna."

"Hey!" Forman started, then thought about it. "Yeah, that's the right call."


	3. Winter

Author's Note: Thank you for the awesome reviews, it's so fun to write for an audience. This is probably the last chapter. There was another plot bunny a little farther down the timeline, but I'm not sure if it's worth publishing. Anyway, I've enjoyed writing this and I hope you enjoy reading. Thanks for the support on the story guys!

* * *

She was at his apartment (which had a table and chairs) when the call came. Crystal, her roommate asked for her, and it was surreal watching her answer the phone, almost like she lived there. Which she basically did. She had most the drawers in his dresser (which she'd picked out), toiletries all over his bathroom, and clothes in his closet. She spent maybe one night in ten at her place, and he knew he should just make it official already, but what if she said no?

Her face went white, and he forgot about all that. "Jackie, what is it?"

"My grandma. She. She's in the hospital." Jackie stuttered, her eyes darting around him.

"Did Crystal say why?"

"I have to go to Milwaukee." She said, moving.

"Milwaukee? It's nine o'clock already, you have work in the morning." He said, trying to reason with her.

"My grandma's in the hospital." She screeched.

"Okay, but we can go in the morning."

"Steven! We're going now."

He pulled out his old canvas duffel bag and packed their clothes while she called her work. As she finished the packing he hunted for map of Wisconsin in the bookshelf they acquired last week, and within fifteen minutes they were on the road.

* * *

"You're gonna hate me for not telling you sooner."

"I'm not gonna hate you Jackie."

"I should have told you at Thanksgiving."

He felt confused, it must have shown on his face.

"You know, when you told me about your parents." She paused, "cause mine did the same thing."

He was surprised, she seemed to have it so, together. Like he noticed when they first met, she was out of his league, but now that thread of understanding that bound them together when they appeared to have nothing in common made sense. They recognized one another behind the masks they wore.

"When I was sixteen my dad got arrested for embezzlement. He was a city Councillor. My mom was a real estate agent. And I was a spoiled cheerleader." She sighed."I thought I had everything all figured out you know? I was going to go to college on my trust fund and catch myself a husband like my mom, and he would take care of me. But overnight everything changed. My dad was in jail, my mom took off to Mexico, and I didn't have anywhere to go."

Steven clutched her hand, "so your grandma came for you?"

"No, social services came, I spent a few nights in a group home." Steven winced, as bad as things had gotten for him that hadn't happened.

"Then they tracked her down – she's my only living relative – and took me to her."

She paused, remembering. The social worker drove her to a rundown section of Milwaukee. They climbed two flights of stairs since the elevator wasn't working. The apartment was clean, and bright, but small, with only one bedroom.

Jackie slept on the couch. Grandma Maggie had arthritis, and hobbled around the apartment. Neither of them could cook, so they ate canned tuna on toast, or beans heated on the stove (they couldn't afford a microwave). The Burkhart money had been frozen during the investigation, so they had a foster care subsidy for Jackie and social security checks for Grandma.

Jackie kept up with cheer, earning herself a scholarship to Wisconsin-Madison, and worked evenings, weekends, and summers at the mall so she could afford the clothes and make-up necessary to stay on the squad. After what had happened to Pam and Maggie she wasn't going to depend on a man, she was going to make her own way, and she was going to do it Jackie Burkhart style.

No one at school knew and she made sure it stayed that way, implying she was out with a college boyfriend when really she was at work, and never invited anyone home. After she left for university that chapter was closed, she wasn't going back to being Grandma Maggie's house guest, or the Burkhart's naïve daughter. She wasn't going to follow their footsteps and snag herself a husband, she wasn't going to depend on anyone for anything ever again.

She glanced over at Steven. He was quiet, driving. It was snowing, reflecting the headlights back into their eyes, and she could barely see the road.

"Steven, say something."

He didn't, but he draped his arm around her, and pulled her close to him, kissing the top of her head.

* * *

Jackie dragged her feet to Grandma Maggie's room the next morning, Steven following with his hand at the small of her back.

"Grandma?"

Grandma Maggie opened her eyes, and tried to talk but a cough rattled her throat and left her lips blue. One of the machines she was attached to set off an alarm and a nurse came in and hooked up the oxygen.

"You have to leave this in Mrs. Donovan." Grandma flailed, pushing the nurse away, and Jackie stepped back into Steven. He tensed behind her.

Exhausted, Grandma Maggie gave up and lay back into the bed, eyes hard with avarice.

"Look at this. Won't even let me die in peace." She groaned, and launched into a fifteen minute complaint about the nursing staff as she looked them up and down. Jackie reassured her, soothing her as she pulled the chair close and took her hand, leaving him standing alone by the door.

Grandma Maggie gave most of her attention to Jackie, her complaints shifting from the nursing staff to Pam.

"Ungrateful child, I brought her into the world, and she doesn't have the decency to show up and take care of me when I'm leaving it. I did everything I could for her you know. I raised her by myself after Joe left, and this is how she repays me? Dumping her problems on me without so much as a hello?"

"And you, with your fancy career in Chicago, leaving me high and dry. They evicted me you know, threw me out on the street."

"I didn't know that Grandma, what happened?" Jackie asked, but like Edna, Maggie skated over the details, focusing instead on her tale of woe. Jackie lapped it up, still feeling she owed her something. When Maggie fell asleep they left to ask a nurse about the diagnosis and prognosis.

Lung cancer, just a few months. And now it made sense. They wanted to send Maggie to a palliative care facility, but her Medicare didn't cover the expense. Maggie had called Jackie to ask her to pay for it. As the nurse went over the pamphlets and projected costs Jackie's eyes widened into a panic.

On her salary she couldn't even rent an apartment in a safe part of town, let alone cover the cost of this. The nurse sensing the problem, withdrew. Jackie slumped into one of the chairs, before standing up and fleeing to the bathroom, probably to fall apart where no one could see it.

Good.

He jostled Maggie awake, "you called her for a shakedown, knowing she would do anything for you."

Maggie didn't say anything, but her smug look was familiar.

"She can't. She doesn't have any money, and even if she did there's no way in hell I'd let her sink it in you. You don't deserve it. What have you ever done for her? Not a god damn thing. You don't even love her, all you see is dollar signs."

Maggie raised her brow in a challenge, she had the pull of family, he knew. He'd left the Forman's when Bud had shown up, and stayed there working to keep the roof over his dad's head out of a sense of obligation, of misguided love for the bastard. He was going to have a hell of a time convincing Jackie.

He milled around the waiting area for nearly an hour before Jackie reappeared. Her mascara was gone, her eyes still dilated and unfocused. He pulled her into a hug.

"We need to talk Jackie."

"How am I going to afford to-"

"You can't give her the money, you don't even have it." He said, trying for gentle.

"Steven! I know! Why can't you help me figure this out instead of pointing out the obvious?"

"The obvious? The obvious is that woman never loved you, and paying for this isn't going to change that."

"She's my grandma, of course she loves me, and I, I love her!" Jackie asserted.

"No she doesn't, she only called you because she thought you could help her out of a jam, that's what people like that do, they expect you to jump because you're family."

"Who else is going to help her?"

"Jackie… you can't. She'll bleed you dry."

Jackie started to cry.

"Don't cry, baby, look-" He said trying to comfort her but she pushed him away.

"I can't believe you! I ask you for help and this is what I get? You stand there and tell me the only family I have left doesn't love me? You're unbelievable!"

"Jackie-"

"No, I…I… God, I loved you." She wiped her eyes.

"I'm just trying to protect you, my dad he did the-"

"I don't want you to protect me, I want you to support me! I want you to help me, be there for me!"

"What the hell do you think I'm trying to do? I know how bad it hurts when you're family uses you like this!"

"I can't ditch my grandma because you say I should. I can't abandon the only family I have left for a guy who won't even tell me he loves me."

"Jackie…"

"Just go Steven." She said and when he didn't she put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot until he left.

* * *

WB was surprised to see him at the office. He hadn't been back since the disastrous month of trying to be a corporate employee. He watched as Steven sat down, then stood again pacing in agitation.

"Steven, what's wrong?"

"It's Jackie."

Steven hadn't actually told WB about Jackie, but from Angie he knew they had been dating for nearly ten months now.

"Did you break up?"

"No!" He said, then softly, "maybe. I don't know." He ran his hand through his hair, "look her Grandma is dying."

"That's terrible, you know when people are grieving they say and do things they wouldn't normally-" He tried to sympathize, but Steven interrupted.

"No, it's not that. Look, she expects Jackie to pay for this palliative care facility so she can die with dignity."

"Oh, well if it's about money I can pay for it-"

"No man, she doesn't deserve it!"

"Jackie?"

"Grandma Maggie, that bitch, you should have seen her, all she could see were dollar signs. She doesn't care about Jackie, all she cares about is herself."

WB nodded, glad Steven was confiding in him, finally.

"I told her not to, and she went ballistic on me man!"

"Well, that's easy to fix, just apologize."

"Apologize? I'm right!"

WB shook his head, "sounds like to me we got a perfect solution."

"What?"

"I'll pay for it, and you apologize and get your girlfriend back."

"I'm not asking you to do that."

"I'm offering. And you better take it. Don't be an idiot."

"No."

WB picked up the phone, "it's not like you can stop me, it's my money."

"People like her don't deserve anything."

"Maybe not, but people like Jackie do." He paused, "people like you do, Steven."

* * *

"Steven!" He slouched against the entryway pillar smoking, Jackie spotting him as she came out of the building.

"Get your Grandma all settled?"

She nodded, "you were right. She didn't even want me to stay and hold her hand."

"I'm sorry."

She snuggled into him, "no, I'm sorry, I can't believe you arranged all this."

He shrugged, "technically I didn't. That's all WB."

"You were right too." He said quietly.

"Hmm?" She said, exhausted from dredging up the past.

"I should tell you I love you, ask you to move in me."

She drew back, a touch of panic back in eyes.

"But then there's this." He said gesturing to the building, "our crappy families. I used to think we were too different for it to work long term. And now, now I think, maybe we're too broken. You know?"

She was crying again. Dammit. This wasn't going as planned.

"But then I look at you, and damn Jacks, all I can think is who cares? Who cares if they couldn't get it right, because I love you. And I should have told you, I should have, but I don't want to be Bud and Edna, I don't want you to stay with me because you feel obligated, I don't want to screw it up. And I will-" she stopped him with a kiss.

"So does that mean you'll move in with me?"

She squealed and threw her arms around him.

"Is that a yes then?"

"Yes, yes of course, yes!"

She pulled back and pouted at him,"if I'm going to move into your place then that means I get to paint the walls."

He laughed.

"I'm serious Steven, it's my home too."

"Fine, but no pink. Or purple. Or flowers. Or frilly lace-"

She stopped him by kissing him, her favorite way of shutting him up and getting her way, and his too, much better than the shin kicking.

"And I want a table, and chairs."

"Jeez, and you wondered why it took me so long to make it official…"

She punched him hard in the arm, he winced, but then she took his hand and draped it over her shoulder, settling into him as they walked to the El Camino on their way home, and filling his ears (and maybe his heart) with plans for the future. Their future.


End file.
